DAY-NULM wound up quietly. Have we removed urban poverty and un-employment?

The Reserve Bank of India, wide its notification RBI/2025-26/39/FIDD.CO.GSSD.BC.No 06/09.16.003/2025-26, announced that the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) has officially concluded on September 30, 2024. Consequently, the Master Circular dated April 5, 2021, on DAY-NULM and other related circulars listed in the Annex stand withdrawn with effect from October 1, 2024.

DAY-NULM was an offshoot of SJSRY, renamed in August 2014. Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) was launched on 01.12.1997 after subsuming the earlier three schemes for urban poverty alleviation, namely Nehru Rozgar Yojana (NRY), Urban Basic Services for the Poor (UBSP), and Prime Minister’s Integrated Urban Poverty Eradication Programme (PMIUPEP). The key objective of the scheme was to provide gainful employment to the urban unemployed or underemployed through the setting up of self-employment ventures or provision of wage employment.

This was a well-conceived programme which itself was an offshoot of earlier efforts. Hence, I am reproducing some of the salient efforts of the same for the readers.

The objectives of the revised Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) were:

• Addressing urban poverty alleviation through gainful employment to the urban unemployed or underemployed poor by encouraging them to set up self-employment ventures (individual or group), with support for their sustainability; or undertake wage employment;

• Supporting skill development and training programmes to enable the urban poor to have access to employment opportunities opened up by the market or undertake self-employment; and

• Empowering the community to tackle the issues of urban poverty through suitable self-managed community structures like Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs), Neighbourhood Committees (NHC), Community Development Society (CDS), etc.

The delivery of inputs under the scheme was through the medium of urban local bodies and community structures. Thus, Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana sought to strengthen these local bodies and community organizations to enable them to address the issues of employment and income generation facing the urban poor.

Coverage
The target population under SJSRY was the urban poor—those living below the poverty line, as defined by the Planning Commission from time to time.

Components
SJSRY had five major components, namely:
(i) Urban Self Employment Programme (USEP)
(ii) Urban Women Self-help Programme (UWSP)
(iii) Skill Training for Employment Promotion amongst Urban Poor (STEP-UP)
(iv) Urban Wage Employment Programme (UWEP)
(v) Urban Community Development Network (UCDN)

To accord special focus on the issues of urban poverty amongst Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), a special component programme of SJSRY, called the Urban Programme for Poverty Reduction amongst SCs & STs (UPPS), was carved out of USEP and STEP-UP.

Funding Pattern and Financial Procedures
Funding under SJSRY was shared between the Centre and the States in the ratio of 75:25.

Urban Self Employment Programme (USEP)
This component had two sub-components:
(i) Assistance to individual urban poor beneficiaries for setting up gainful self-employment ventures [Loan & Subsidy]
(ii) Technology / marketing / infrastructure / knowledge & other support provided to the urban poor in setting up their enterprises as well as marketing their products [Technology, Marketing & Other Support].

Urban Self Employment Programme (Loan & Subsidy)
This component of SJSRY focused on providing assistance to individual urban poor beneficiaries for setting up gainful self-employment ventures—micro-enterprises.

Coverage
The programme was applicable to all cities and towns on a whole-town basis. Within each town, it was implemented by selecting whole clusters of the poor segments so as to bring in efficiencies in the administration and the delivery mechanisms and also make the impact visible.

USEP laid special focus on women, persons belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC) / Scheduled Tribes (ST), differently-abled persons and such other categories as may be indicated by the Government from time to time. The percentage of women beneficiaries under USEP was not to be less than 30%. SCs and STs were to be benefited at least to the extent of the proportion of their strength in the city/town population below poverty line (BPL). A special provision of 3% reservation in the total number of beneficiaries was made for the differently-abled under USEP.

In view of the then Prime Minister’s New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities, 15% of the physical and financial targets under the Urban Self Employment Programme at the national level were earmarked for the minority communities.

Educational Qualification
No minimum or maximum educational qualification was prescribed for selection of beneficiaries under USEP. Where the identified activity for micro-enterprise development required skill training of an appropriate level, the same was provided to the beneficiaries before extending financial support.

Beneficiary Identification
A house-to-house survey for identification of genuine beneficiaries, with focus on slums and low-income settlements, was to be conducted. Model formats for conduct of slum survey, household survey and livelihoods survey and guidelines were communicated by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation. In addition to the economic criteria of the Urban Poverty Line, non-economic parameters were also applied to identify the urban poor for receiving benefits under SJSRY. Community structures like Neighbourhood Groups, Neighbourhood Committees and Community Development Societies were to be involved in the task of identification of beneficiaries under the guidance of the City/Town Urban Poverty Alleviation Cell (UPA Cell). Assistance of NGOs/other identified bodies was also secured for this purpose.

All other conditions being equal, women beneficiaries belonging to women-headed households were ranked higher in priority than other beneficiaries. For purposes of this section, women-headed households meant households headed by widows, divorcees, single women, or even households where women are the sole earners.

Cluster Approach
Identifiably, clusters were taken for support under SJSRY and efforts were to be made to ensure that all adults in the cluster were provided with benefits of skill development, self-employment or wage employment so that no urban poor household was left with an adult without means of earning income. Clusters were to be so chosen that the USEP target groups got attention.

USEP encouraged under-employed and unemployed urban poor to set up small enterprises relating to manufacturing, servicing and petty business for which there was a lot of potential in urban areas. Local skills and local crafts were encouraged for this purpose. Each town/urban local body had to develop a compendium of such activities/projects keeping in view marketability, cost, economic viability etc. To avoid duplication with the ongoing Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), this component of SJSRY was to be confined to Below Poverty Line (BPL) beneficiaries with emphasis on those given a higher priority on the basis of non-economic criteria. Beneficiaries had to declare that they had not availed similar benefits under any other self-employment scheme. The list of beneficiaries was to be shared with PMEGP to rule out duplication of coverage.

For the purpose of self-employment, focus was on 3 sectors i.e., Production (Micro-industry), Services and Business.

On the Micro-industry (Manufacturing) side, a group of people (hub) was to be encouraged for setting up of enterprises centered around and supported by Micro Business Centres (MBC), established following a cluster approach. Space was provided by MBCs in the form of working sheds or micro-entrepreneurs could work from their homes.

Cluster
In the Business Sector, i.e., shop-based enterprises, kiosks/spaces were to be leased out by the ULBs to the urban poor for setting up shops. Vendors’ markets were to be promoted. Mobile vending outlets, running on motorized scooters, were encouraged with suitable technological interventions. Beneficiaries could also run their ventures from their own houses/shops.

Opportunities in the transport sector, viz. running of scooter rickshaws, motorized cycle rickshaws for ferrying people/goods, were explored. Group ownership/Occupational Credit Groups concept in this sector was encouraged.

Micro-business Centres could be planned to cover Services and Business sectors, apart from Micro-industry. For businesses, they could help with project preparation, permissions from planning and regulatory agencies, maintenance of accounts, advertisement, packaging, branding, deciding maximum retail price, marketing, etc.

The details of financing pattern under USEP were as follows :

SJSRY encouraged group formation by the urban poor for setting up micro enterprises. In case a number of beneficiaries, either male or a mixed group consisting of males and females, decide to jointly set up a project, such project will be eligible for a subsidy, which will be equal to the total sum of permitted subsidy per person as per the above criteria. In this case too, the provision relating to 5% margin money per beneficiary would apply. The overall project cost permitted was the simple sum of the individual project cost allowable per beneficiary.

Technology, Marketing and Other Support

This component mainly focused on handholding support for the urban poor entrepreneurs who wanted to be self-employed and set up their own small businesses or manufacturing units. Under this component, Micro-Business Centres (MBC) were established at cluster level (e.g. handlooms/handicrafts, food processing, construction, glass & ceramics, electrical and electronics, mechanical engineering, auto driving & mechanics, metal works, etc.), supported with one-time capital grant subject to the concerned State Government/Urban Local Body providing the required land free of cost. This was to be run on the basis of a Public-Private-Partnership (P-P-P) model. MBCs could also be run by the society of entrepreneurs themselves with manpower hired on a contract basis.

Technology, marketing, consultancy (advice) & other support was also provided to beneficiaries setting up micro-enterprises, in relation to production and marketing of their products etc. This could be accomplished by providing selling places for the poor in the form of kiosks and rehri markets, setting up of Nagar Palika Seva/Suvidha Kendras for construction and other services (like those provided by carpenters, plumbers, electricians, TV/radio/refrigerator mechanics, etc. who will be available to city residents on call), and through liaison for provision of weekend markets/evening markets in municipal grounds or on roadsides on the one hand and technical assistance in relation to market surveys/trends, joint brand names/designs and advertising on the other. Community Development Societies (CDSs) provided all needed help including securing of raw materials and marketing of products by the urban poor.

It was also proposed that a Service Centre be set up at the CDS level for those who have undergone skill upgradation training. Appropriate space was to be provided to trained persons who asked to enroll themselves with the Service Centre so that they could be sent to attend day-to-day skilled tasks on call from citizens against appropriate scales of payment fixed by the Community Development Society (CDS).

Special assistance could be provided for setting up of Community-level Service Centres, which could be used for multifarious activities such as workplaces/branding/marketing centres etc. for beneficiaries under this programme. These were to be administered on a day-to-day basis by the local CDS. Space for such centres was to be provided free of cost either by the local body or any other agency.

The construction of the Seva/Suvidha Kendra should follow the norms laid down under the Scheme of Urban Wage Employment Programme.

Clusters of micro-production units could be developed in keeping with the factors of localization pertaining to traditional skills and in terms of towns known for specific products. Appropriate or intermediate technology inputs were used to strengthen the technological base of the selected clusters in terms of Common Facility Centres providing critical machinery/equipment required for common use by clusters of microenterprises as well as ensuring supply of quality raw materials at reasonable prices. These Common Facility Centres were to be run by associations of micro-entrepreneurs themselves related to the selected economic activity. Entrepreneurs should be provided high-quality Small Enterprise Advisory Services (SEAS).

Micro-entrepreneurs were to be encouraged in developing trade-based organisations/associations. Mobile vending outlets may be developed with technological design and development support from IITs and other reputed institutions. An integrated approach was to be adopted with special attention to backward and forward linkages for a complete range of activities in the establishment of the enterprises.

Urban Women Self-Help Programme (UWSP)
This Component had two sub-components:
(i) Assistance to groups of urban poor women for setting up gainful self-employment ventures – UWSP (Loan & Subsidy)
(ii) Revolving Funds for Self-Help Groups (SHGs)/Thrift & Credit Societies (T&CSs) formed by the urban poor women – UWSP (Revolving Fund).

Women Self-Help Programme (Loan & Subsidy)
This scheme was distinguished by the special incentive extended to urban poor women who decide to set up self-employment ventures in a group as opposed to individual effort. Groups of urban poor women may take up an economic activity suited to their skill, training, aptitude, and local conditions. Besides generation of income, this group strategy would strive to empower the urban poor women by making them independent as also providing a facilitating atmosphere for self-employment. Under UWSP, an activity-focused, area-specific approach will be adopted for setting up micro/group enterprises with emphasis on micro-finance.

To be eligible for subsidy under this scheme, the UWSP group should consist of at least 5 urban poor women. Before starting an income-generating activity the group members must get to know each other well, understand the group strategy, and also recognize the strength and the potential of each member of the group. The group would select an organizer from amongst the members. The group will also select its own activity. In addition, every effort was to be made to encourage the group to set itself up as a Self-Help Group or Thrift & Credit Society, mobilizing savings and credit.

For setting up group enterprises, the UWSP group was entitled to a subsidy of Rs. 300,000/- or 35% of the cost of the project or Rs. 60,000/- per Member of the Group, whichever was less. The remaining amount was to be mobilized as Bank Loan and Margin Money.

Urban Women Self-Help Programme (Revolving Fund)
Where the UWSP group sets itself up as a Self-Help Group (SHG)/Thrift & Credit Society (T&CS), mobilizing savings and credit in addition to its other entrepreneurial activities, the SHG/T&CS was entitled to a lump sum grant of Rs. 25,000/- as Revolving Fund at the rate of Rs. 2,000/- maximum per member. This Revolving Fund was available to a simple Self-Help Group/Thrift & Credit Society also, even if the society is not engaged in any project activity or enterprise under UWSP. This fund was meant for the use of the SHG/T&CS for purposes such as:

(i) Purchases of raw materials and marketing;
(ii) Infrastructure support for income generation and other group activities;
(iii) One-time expense on child care activity. Recurring expenses like salary for staff etc. will not be permissible;
(iv) Expenses not exceeding Rs. 500/- to meet travel costs of group members for visits to banks, town UPA Cell etc.;
(v) Where an individual member of a Thrift & Credit Society/Self-Help Group saves at least Rs. 500/- in a fixed deposit for 12 months with the society, she was entitled to a subsidy of Rs. 30 to be paid on her behalf towards a health/life/accident/any other insurance scheme for herself. Moreover, in cases where the member saves at least Rs. 750 in a fixed deposit in 12 months, she will be entitled to a subsidy of Rs. 60, at the rate of Rs. 30 for the member herself and either Rs. 30 for her husband towards health/life/accident/any other insurance or Rs. 30 for any minor girl child in her family for health/accident insurance. This expense may also be debited to the revolving fund.

A Self-Help Group/Thrift and Credit Society under UWSP was entitled for payment of revolving fund not earlier than one year after its formation. In other words, only such a body, in existence and functioning for at least one year, was eligible for payment of the revolving fund. The decision whether a group has been in existence and functioning for more than one year was taken on the basis of examination of the records of the group as regards the number of meetings held, the collections made from members towards group savings, the regularity of collection, the role of the group in capacity building or training of its members, etc. The registration of the groups will be encouraged. However, it may not be insisted upon as a precondition for receipt of revolving fund if their performance was otherwise considered satisfactory by the Urban Poverty Alleviation (UPA) Cell of the Urban Local Body (ULB). Federations of SHGs/T&CS at the cluster/ward/city level will need to be registered for channelisation of Revolving Fund, bank credit etc. States/UTs were to issue guidelines prescribing eligibility criteria for receipt of revolving fund benefits by groups.

Self-Help Group/Thrift & Credit Society – Bank linkage was to be accorded priority under SJSRY. SHG/T&CS will be encouraged to avail bank credit, on the basis of their performance, for their requirements. Flexibility was provided to States/UTs for the involvement of financial institutions/cooperatives/cooperative banks/NGOs active in the micro-credit field and other micro-finance institutions like Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK), SEWA, NABARD, SIDBI, ICICI Bank etc., wherever desirable, for providing micro-finance to the Self-Help Groups of women.

Training for Employment Promotion amongst Urban Poor (Step-Up)

This component of SJSRY was focused on providing assistance for skill formation/upgradation of the urban poor to enhance their capacity to undertake self-employment as well as access better salaried employment.

Like USEP, STEP-UP targeted the urban population below poverty line, as defined by the Planning Commission from time to time. The percentage of women beneficiaries under STEP-UP should not be less than 30%. SCs and STs must be benefited at least to the extent of the proportion of their strength in the city/town population below poverty line (BPL). A special provision of 3% reservation should be made for the differently-abled, under this programme. In view of the Prime Minister’s New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities, 15% of the physical and financial targets under the Skill Training for Employment Promotion amongst Urban Poor (STEP-UP) at the national level shall be earmarked for the minority communities.

STEP-UP intended to provide training to the urban poor in a variety of service, business and manufacturing activities as well as in local skills and local crafts so that they can set up self-employment ventures or secure salaried employment with enhanced remuneration. Training should also be imparted in vital components of the service sector like the construction trade and allied services such as carpentry, plumbing, electrical and also in manufacturing low-cost building materials based on improved or cost-effective technology using local materials.

Skill training was to be linked to accreditation, certification and preferably be taken on Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) mode with the involvement of reputed institutions like IITs, NITs, Industry Associations, reputed Engineering Colleges, Management Institutes, Foundations and other reputed agencies. Training institutions such as ITIs/Polytechnics/Shramik Vidyapeeths, Engineering Colleges and other suitable institutions run by Government, private, or voluntary organizations may be utilized and provided appropriate support for skills training of the urban poor subject to verification of their brand image and quality of instructions being imparted. Services of the Building Centres sponsored by the Housing & Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO)/Building Material Technology Promotion Council (BMPTC) within the States/UTs could be utilized for the purpose of construction-related training, as per the local requirements.

The average unit cost allowed for training was not to exceed Rs. 10,000/- per trainee, including material cost, trainers’ fees, tool kit cost, other miscellaneous expenses to be incurred by the training institution and the monthly stipend, to be paid to the trainee.

Urban Wage Employment Programme (UWEP)
This programme was to provide wage employment to beneficiaries living below the poverty line within the jurisdiction of urban local bodies by utilising their labour for construction of socially and economically useful public assets. These assets could be Community Centres, Storm Water Drains, Roads, Night Shelters, Kitchen Sheds in Primary Schools under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme and other community requirements like Parks, Solid Waste Management facilities, as decided by the community structures themselves. The Urban Wage Employment Programme (UWEP) was applicable only to towns/cities with population up to 5 lakhs, as per the 1991 Census.

UWEP provided opportunities for wage employment, especially for the unskilled and semi-skilled migrants/residents by creation of community assets. Special emphasis was on the construction of community assets in low-income neighbourhoods with strong involvement and participation of local communities.

The material: labour ratio for works under this programme was to be maintained at 60:40. However, States/UTs could relax this material: labour ratio up to 10% (either way), wherever absolutely necessary. The prevailing minimum wage rate, as notified from time to time for each area, must be paid to beneficiaries under this programme.

Community Development Societies (CDSs) were to survey and draw up a list of available basic minimum services in their areas. Missing basic minimum services were to be first identified. Other requirements of physical infrastructure were to be listed thereafter.

As far as possible, works were to be executed through CDSs, under the general control and supervision of the ULBs. ULBs were expected to maintain a close watch over the quality of construction. Work must be done departmentally and detailed guidelines as regards maintenance of muster rolls, social audit etc. were to be issued in this regard by the concerned State/UT Governments. To the extent possible, even the material component of the work should be done departmentally. Where departmental work was not possible due to the specialised nature of the work involved, such material component of the work may be got done through agencies by following proper tendering/Government procedure.

In all cases, it was ensured that the works undertaken under UWEP were brought to a safe stage and no work was left incomplete or pending half-way. In case of cost escalation, or expansion in the nature of the work, or increase in the project estimate for any other reason whatsoever, and if additional funds were not available under this programme, it was the basic responsibility of the sanctioning authority/implementing authority i.e., Urban Local Body/District Urban Development Agency to ensure the completion of such works by bringing in additional resources from other programmes/own resources, if so required.

Urban Community Development Network (UCDN) – Community Structures, Community Development & Empowerment
SJSRY rested on the foundation of community development and empowerment. Rather than relying on the traditional method of top-down implementation, the Scheme relied on establishing and nurturing community organisations and structures that facilitate sustained urban poverty alleviation. Towards this end, community organisations like Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs), Neighbourhood Committees (NHCs), and Community Development Societies (CDSs) were set up in the target areas.

Programme Implementation – Administrative & Other Expenses (A&OE)
For the implementation of SJSRY, a proper administrative set-up or mechanism was conceptualised. The States/UTs were to ensure that other programmes like Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission were properly coordinated with SJSRY so as to complement each other and avoid administrative duplication or redundancy.

At the ULB level, there was to be a Town Urban Poverty Alleviation Cell (UPA Cell) under the Executive Officer or Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation/Municipality, supported by a Project Officer (PO)/Assistant Project Officer (APO).

At District level, a District Urban Development Agency, i.e., DUDA or a district level agency/mechanism was to function to coordinate the scheme and undertake capacity-building activities for all ULBs within the District. This was headed by a District Project Officer, who may be supported with staff as required. DUDA or the district level agency was also to coordinate with the District Planning Committee set up in the District in accordance with the Constitution 74th Amendment Act. It was to liaise with Line Departments for implementing urban poverty alleviation and related programmes effectively. The setting up as well as functioning of Micro-Business Centres (MBCs) was to be monitored by the DUDA or district level agency based on guidelines to be issued by the States/UTs.

At the State/UT level, State Urban Development Agency (SUDA)/State UPA Cell/Department of the State/UT Government such as Directorate of Municipal Administration, closely associated with the functioning of Urban Local Bodies and having proper manpower and logistics support, was to be designated as the State/UT Nodal Agency for all urban poverty alleviation programmes including SJSRY.

A dedicated cadre/service of officers specialising in urban poverty alleviation/community mobilisation and development was to be set up for supporting the implementation of urban poverty alleviation and related programmes in the States/UTs. These officers were to be appointed at ULB/District/State levels, with suitable promotion avenues, for implementation of various urban poverty alleviation schemes including Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) with a professional approach.

Reputed Community-Based Organisations (CBOs)/Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) could be involved in the implementation of the Scheme in relation to various activities meant for benefiting the BPL population such as community mobilisation, organisation of community structures, beneficiary identification, skills training, market survey, entrepreneurship development etc. Procedural guidelines for the involvement of CBOs/NGOs were to be decided by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation from time to time.

The Government of India, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA), restructured the existing Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) and launched the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM). The Self Employment Programme (SEP) component of NULM was to focus on providing financial assistance through a provision of interest subsidy on loans to support establishment of Individual & Group Enterprises and Self-Help Groups (SHGs) of the urban poor.

The existing provision of capital subsidy for USEP (Urban Self Employment Programme) and UWSP (Urban Women Self-Help Programme) components of SJSRY was replaced by interest subsidy for loans to Individual enterprise (SEP-I), Group enterprise (SEP-G), and Self Help Groups (SHGs).

The Ministry advised that the NULM was under implementation w.e.f. September 24, 2013, in all district headquarters (irrespective of population) and all the cities with a population of 1 lakh or more and that SJSRY was to remain operational till March 31, 2014 only. Accordingly, capital subsidy as per SJSRY guidelines was also to be extended on bank loans for setting up of individual and group enterprises under USEP and UWSP components of SJSRY respectively till March 31, 2014 only.

The details of the revised scheme which has been summed up from 8 RBI circulars from 2014 to 2021 is in this Master Circular for ready reference: RBI/2021-22/12 FIDD.GSSD.CO.BC.No.03/09.16.03/2021-22 dated April 05, 2021.

The Key changes made were:

• Capital subsidy of 25% to individual, group, and Self Help Groups was removed without citing the reason, and a back-end interest subsidy was provided on repayment of the entire loan.

• Revolving fund was removed and banks were asked to give working capital loans. Working capital is completely different from a revolving fund.

• The Neighbourhood Groups/Councils, Community Development Societies, and District Urban Development Agency with dedicated staff were forgotten.

• The responsibility of identifying beneficiaries was given to so-called community organisers and professionals in Urban Local Bodies, or individual applicants were directed to submit an application on plain paper.

• Area Level Federations were asked to be formed without clarifying who would take responsibility.

• Urban Local Bodies were asked to carry out the entire task without adequate experts, staff, and funds.

In short, a comprehensive community development programme was reduced to a programme to be implemented by a few individuals without expertise.

This now appears as a planned effort to kill the SJSRY scheme which was doing quite well. I have implemented SJSRY as a field officer of a bank, district coordinator for Government-sponsored schemes, and have seen it working well in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Kerala conducted Panchayat Resource Mapping with the support of Centre for Development Studies through Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad, which I too was associated with. They covered rural as well as Urban Local Bodies. The Neighbourhood Groups/Councils, Community Development Societies, and Kudumbashree women’s groups with SHGs continue to flourish. But the changes made in the SJSRY and implementation of the DAY-NULM have led to the collapse of people’s participation, group dynamics, and ultimately the closure of the mission.

The latest figures given on the website claim that 37,62,271 livelihoods were created, 96,92,512 women were enrolled in SHGs, 15,36,286 were given skill training, 29,49,419 street vendor ID cards were issued, 38,19,649 certificates of vending were issued, and 1,40,911 shelter spaces were created. For a country of 142 crore people and increasing urbanisation, this is nothing.

If we look at the data on bank loans on the website, the data is horrible. For the biggest bank in the country, loans to SHGs under NULM show zero for Odisha, Gujarat, Assam, and Bihar for the period 1.4.2014 to 1.5.2025. This can’t be true.

The Government has to clarify why it has abandoned the mission. Where did they go wrong? Why was this not told to the people of the country or Parliament? The future of the urban poor is bleak with this kind of programmes devised to fail.

Thomas Franco is the former General Secretary of the All India Bank Officers’ Confederation and a Steering Committee Member at the Global Labour University.

Centre for Financial Accountability is now on Telegram and WhatsApp. Click here to join our Telegram channel and click here to join our WhatsApp channeland stay tuned to the latest updates and insights on the economy and finance.